


Phonies

by Querulousgawks



Category: Veronica Mars (TV), Veronica Mars - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Catcher in the Rye - Freeform, Family, Fix-It, Gen, Pre-Series, Spoilers through the end of season two, brief references to past abuse and it's effects, lying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-16
Updated: 2014-08-16
Packaged: 2018-02-13 09:01:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2144844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Querulousgawks/pseuds/Querulousgawks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A fix-it ficlet, in which Cassidy skips Shelley Pomeroy's party and spends the night being your average rambling morose 14 year-old. Apologies, sort of, to J.D. Salinger.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Phonies

In the end, Cassidy traded going to Shelly Pomeroy’s party for the mild satisfaction of lying about it.

It was new, enjoying that low-level rush. He vaguely remembered believing everything, in the single-digit years, then catching on to his dad and his brother and not believing anything, but he’d always been painfully honest himself. In Little League, lying was just his job, the only one he was good at ( _you can’t catch a ball, son - can you keep a secret?_ ) but he was starting to wonder if it could be a game all its own. 

Can’t have too much practice, their dad would say, so he winced in his brother’s direction and sighed, “homework. Film project,” as Dick cuffed him and left. He didn’t have a film class. As far as he know, the school didn't offer one. Lying to Dick was like playing the electronic chessboard on the easiest setting: there wasn’t any pride in it, but at least you always won.

Cassidy actually owned an electronic chessboard. Haley, the..third wife? had dropped one on his desk the day Dick and his Dad took off fishing for the weekend without him. He found out when Dick texted him a picture from the harbor: “C u sunday with the catch sucka! Put an apron on!!” Haley hadn’t felt bad enough to stand up her spa date, but she could recognize a dick move and she was fond of gestures: “Cheer up, Holden. This is more your style.” It wasn’t until eighth grade English that he got the reference, and he still couldn’t decide if he was offended or amused.

He’d been playing chess on the real computer for years, but he wouldn’t waste her goodwill by rejecting a gift. And it turned out to be different, holding the pieces in his hand. (Once, after checking the driveway three times and locking the doors, he actually tried sweeping the pieces off the board to play from memory. It gave him a headache.) The house had gotten emptier shortly afterwards, once Haley realized Dick Sr. liked her spa friend even better then she did. But when alimony came up and his dad swaggered out to his lawyers’, sure she had no proof, Cass had thought of the chessboard and provided some. Turned out he liked gestures, too.

Anyway. Lying. It landed him a night spent with pizza and  _The Anarchist Cookbook_ , instead of unlikely mixed drinks and Shelly Pomeroy’s wallpaper: looking like his new favorite sport. Dick came back too late for curfew, yet too soon for Cassidy, weaving slightly and in a good mood. ”Shoulda come, Beav! Veronica Mars was so  _wasted_ ,” he flopped down on the couch, full of gory details, “even you could have gotten with her. Coulda made you a man!”

Stupid, tiny, lost-her-protectors, fucked-by-the-world, Veronica Mars. He wasn’t gonna make it through this conversation. Cassidy flipped his greasy plate over onto Dick’s lap and ran for the bathroom.

Whatever. Holden Caulfield probably never got hard without getting nauseous, either.


End file.
